POTENTIAL BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: Several Temple Locations Added to Google Maps or Classic Maps; Release of Official Information Imminent?

Hello again, everyonne! On the Church Growth Blog, there have been periodic mentions of details of new temples being added on the Church's Classic Maps page. Most often, those mentions occur when recently-dedicated temples are added to show their corresponding temple districts. But periodically, a new tidbit can be gleaned about other temples that are in various phases of planning and approval. And it is on that front that I am providing this report of potential breaking temple news. 

Several new comments on the most recent thread of the Church Growth Blog provide information about temples that have recently been added to Classic Maps. Each of these temples is currently in an "Announced" status, where no official information has been released by the Church. So those temples being added in the very recent past might suggest that they are temples to watch for the near future for potential announcements, including (but not limited to) site and/or location confirmations, exterior renderings released, and groundbreakings scheduled (or already having privately taken place). 

The first of those mentioned, Managua Nicaragua, has a location that is verified only by Google Maps, not by the Church's Classic Maps page.  But since a site was reportedly acquired for that temple a while ago, and since it is the third of three Central American temples previously referenced in past comments here from Patzicia, who provided accurate information about the timing of the release of site information, exterior renderings, and groundbreaking announcements before those announcements were eventually made, the fact that it is listed on Google maps gives me hope that something official could be coming down the pike soon.

The same situation applies to the Lagos Nigeria Temple. We know, courtesy of the Church of Jesus Christ Temples site, that property was acquired for that temple not long after its' announcement, and although the Google Maps information is not also reflected on Classic Maps, hopefully that means something will happen with that temple sooner rather than later. The Cagayan de Oro Philippines Temple is similarly listed on Google maps, but also shows up on Classic Maps in the same spot. It will be up to the Church to confirm that is indeed the location, but it seems more likely than not.

Similarly, Google Maps provides information on the location of the Rexburg North Idaho Temple, for which a member living in that region has confirmed the information is accurate. We also have an indirect confirmationon the location of the Rexburg North Idaho Temple, which follows the early October report about the family who deeded the land for the temple over to the Church. Unless something major chages, that will be the location of the temple in question.

And finally, I had mentioned in the past that I received feedback shortly after the announcement of the Russia temple that the only cities under active consideration were Moscow, Saratov, and St. Petersburg. Subsequently, I learned from someone privy to the information that Moscow was the only location under active consideration. And given that the headquarters for the Europe East Area offices are located in Moscow, it would not shock me if the temple in Russia was not only based in Moscow, but also included ancillary facilities with offices and residences for the area and mission presidency members.

So I was not shocked by a recent statement on the Church Growth Blog that Classic Maps showed the probable location of the Russia Temple, which, if true, will likely mean the name of that temple will be the Moscow Russia Temple. I was in the middle of an overhaul on my temple construction progress report anyway in view of new analysis I did on the likely timing for temple dedications and rededications for the next two years, so updates were necessary either way.

That being said, I want to be absolutely clear when I say that until the Church makes official announcements on any of these 5 temples, any information from anywhere else, including even the Classics Maps site, is subject to change, clarification or correction. When the time is right for each of these 5 temples (or any others) to move forward in the queue, that will occur. The Lord is in control of His work, and He manifests His will concerning any aspect thereof through His chosen prophet today, President Russell M. Nelson.

But these latest updates also mean that there will likely be even more temple news to cover in the coming months than I originally believed. To the best of my ability, I will track all of these developments and pass word of those along to you all here as I become aware thereof. In the meantime, that does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines.

I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

Clarification on Blog Comments

Hello again, everyone! Since a good majority of the comments on this blog lately have come from me personally, I wanted to provide some clarification. I had one new comment submitted today on the threads of the previous post by Nancy, who also comments periodically on the threads of the Church Growth Blog. Though there wasn't anything wrong with Nancy's comment, she chose to delete it herself a few hours after it was posted.So I wanted to set the record straight regarding comments from you all here: Last year or the year before, any new development was covered in a new post, leaving the comments free for others to share their thoughts. As there have been more minor developments than major news items lately, I have begun providing a stream of those updates in the comments thread of other posts.

So I worry that many of you may have felt discouraged to share your feedback and input in the comments becausee a majority of the comments in each thread come from me. Here's the thing: As I'm sure many of you reading these posts know, there has been quite a lot more to cover in termis of general Church news on this blog. I no longer have time to devote new posts to every update, which is why I have shared the bulk of those in comments lately. But I never intended for any of you reading this blog to feel as a result of my increased comments that your input is no longer valid or necessary. To the contrary, as coverage of major developments continue, more than ever, I need the input of my readers.

I sincerely apologize if that hasn't been clear to you all. I also apologize if my large monopolization of the comments thread has been a deterrent to any of you from weighing in. I want to provide as much coverage of the ongoing developments of the continuing restoration as I can. But I also very much want to hear from you all in response to those reports, as often as any of you might want to weigh in. So if you have any feedback on what I can do to improve the comment threads here so it's not always just me sharing subsequent updates, I'd be happy to take those suggestions under advisement.

As the work accelerates, we need each other. I need to hear from you just as much as I want to ensure I provide the most thorough coverage of the ongoing restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ.That does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines.

I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

BREAKING NEWS: April General Conference Will Include a Women's Session

 Hello again, everyone! Breaking news was reported by the Church a short time ago. As confirmed by the Newsroom and the Church News, the April 2022 General Conference will include a Women's Session for all wmen and girls age 11 and older. This means that, before my revision to my General Conference predictions was complete, I will have to redo them again based on this new information. 

It appears there will be flexibility in the scheduling of the Saturday Evening Session. I assume that, in similarity to previous Women's Sessions, they will feature 3 female speakers and the entire First Presidency in reverse seniority order. This also means that no apostles are likely to speak during that session. 

So adjustments will need to be made to that part of my predictions.I also assume, until further evidence suggests otherwise, that the sWomen's Session will be conducted by one of the female General Presidents. I will be evaluating what that means for my predictions as well. This announcement supercedes any previous predictions I have provided.

The First Presidency's announcement today also notes that a limited number of tickets will be made available for each session. I assume the details on how many tickets that will be for each session are forthcoming. Given that part of the announcement, it will be interesting to see if the other sessions return to normal. There is also a possibility that one of the apostolic advisers to the General Officers could be called upon to speak.With that in mind, I will hopefully have revised predictions ready to go sooner rather than later. I will put in some work on those ASAP. Stay tuned for more on this as I figure that out.

In the meantime, that does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: Site Confirmed, Exterior Rendering Releaed, and Groundbreaking Announced for the Bahia Blanca Argentina Temple

Hello again, everyone! In aa single announcement today, the First Presidency released the location and rendering for the Bahia Blanca Argentina Temple and set a groundbreaking for it. The location will be Aldea Romana over Cabrera Avenue on a 8.14 acre site. The project will feature an ancillary building of 25,000 square feet, which will feature patron housing and a distribution center,

The temple itself will be a single-story edifice of 19,000 square feet. Elder Joquin E. Costa, the current First Counselor in the Brazil Area Presidency, will break ground for this temple that will serve his home city of Concordia, Entre Rios, Argentina on Saturday April 9, 2022. That means it will occur two weeks prior to the recently-announced groundbreaking for the Lindon Utah Temple. So there will be 1 temple groundbreaking in March, followed by 3 temple groundbreakings in April in a 3-week period. 

That also means that, before the one-year anniversary of the Deseret Peak Utah Temple groundbreaking (which will be observed on May 15), four new temples will have had a groundbreaking before the time it tookto do the first one last year. That suggests 2022 will indeed be a big year for groundbreakings. I can't wait to see the announcements that may come next.

In the meantime, that does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do

BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: Renovation Work Completed on the Medford Oregon Temple; All US Temples Now Open for Living & Proxy Ordinances

Hello again, everyone! A short time ago, the Church News confirmed temple reopening updates. Right off the bat, it was announced that the process of "extended maintenance" or "renovation" has been completed for the Mdeford Oregon Temple, which will now move to phase 3 as early as next week. As a result of this adjustment, all 82 currently-operating temples in the United States will be in phase 3. For the Washington D.C. and Columbus Ohio Temples, their phase 3 status will allow the patrons served within those districts to schedule living and proxy ordinances at the nearest temple(s) to them.

Additionally, the Montreal Quebec Temple, recently closed down due to pandemic-related restrictions, is also reopening in phase 3. 167 of the Church's 170 temples (98.2%) are now in phase 3. And with two additional temples operating in phase 2-B, all but one of those 170 temples (for a total of 99.4%)  are now offering all living ordinances and at least proxy baptisms. As a result of these changes, 8 temples are currently under renovation (with all 8 of those granted phase 3 status) no temples are currently "paused" in their reopenings, and none are in phase 2. 1 temple (Suva Fiji) is in phase 1.

2 others (Barranquilla Colombia and Seoul Korea) are in phase 2-B, with the remaining 167 in phase 3 as noted above. The Church News update also acknowledges that, with so many temples operating in phase 3, and with the Church holding off for now on attempting to shift any temples to phase 4, reopening updates will be more sporadic and will be published only as needed going forward. The details shared in the Church News update are likewsie noted in the temple reopening status tracker and in the official release from the Newsroom.

Interestingly enough, the Newsroom incorrectly lists the Rio de Janeiro Brazil and Yigo Guam Temples as "Temples Undergoing Renovation",when both are new temples that have been completed and are awaiting their dedications, which have been scheduled. I suppose categorizing those as "Under Renovation" may be easier for the Newsroom staff than making that distinction that they are awaiting scheduled dedications. Just thought that was noteworthy.

I don't know at this point whether any other breaking news will be reported by the Church for the duration of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, but if and when those reports are shared, I will be sure to pass them along to you all here. I also monitor all temple construction updates and general Church news and will pass word of those along to you all as I become aware thereof.

In the meantime, that does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

Elder Ronald A. Rasband Observes His 71st Birthday

Hello again, everyone! This post is written in honor of Elder Rasband, who today becomes the second current septuagenarian apostle. I am pleased to share a biographical overview of his life with you all on his special day. Ronald Anderson Rasband was born to Rulon Hawkins Rasband and Verda Anderson in Salt Lake City, Utah, on February 6, 1951. He served as a full-time missionary in the Eastern States Mission, which was headquartered in New York City and encompassed the whole New York Metro area, while also stretching into western New York and Pennsylvania. He met Melanie Twitchell in a class they both attended at BYU. At the time, both of them were dating other people, but they soon made arrangements to go on a date themselves, and once they started dating, that was it for both of them. They got engaged eight weeks later, were married in the Salt Lake Temple in 1973, and went on to raise their five children.

Following their marriage, they continued their studies at the University of Utah. He later discontinued his college experience in order to begin his professional career in the Huntsman Container Company as a Sales Representative in 1976. Still in that employment 11 years later (in 1987), he was promoted to the position of president and chief operating officer of Huntsman Chemical Corporation, where he closely worked with Jon Huntsman Sr. and later served on the board of directors of that company. It was not until 1995 that, in tribute to his success as a businessman, he received an honorary degree in business and commerce from Utah Valley State College (now Utah Valley University).

As prestigious as his professional career might have been, his life, in similarity to those of his fellow apostles, has been characterized by a variety of assignments in the Church. Elder Rasband has served as a bishop, Temple Square missionary guide, member of the Church’s Sesquicentennial Committee, and, from 1996-1999, as president of the New York New York North Mission. On April 1, 2000, he was sustained as a general authority and member of the First Quorum of the Seventy. Over the next 5 years, he served in the Europe North & Europe Central Areas from 2000-2003 (with both areas having since been consolidated). From 2003-2004, he presided over the Utah Salt Lake City Area. In August 2004, responsibility for oversight of the work of the Church in North America was transferred to the Presidency of the Sevent

He then served from 2004-2005 as Executive Director of the Temple Department. He was called to serve in the Presidency of the Seventy in August 2005, at which time he was assigned oversight for the North America Northwest and North America West Areas. Two years later, his assignment shifted to supervising the Utah North, Utah Salt Lake City, and Utah South Areas (from 2007-2009).

By August of 2008, he had become the second most senior member of the Presidency of the Seventy. The following April, as a result of Elder Neil L. Andersen's call to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Elder Rasband became the Senior President of the Seventy, and, as such, was given oversight for all areas in the United States and Canada.

He was still serving in that same assignment when, in October 2015, he was called to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. With Elders Gary E. Stevenson and Dale G. Renlund called at the same time (something that had not happened since 1906), the number of those who had served as members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles reached a total of 100. He is currently the eighth in seniority among the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and the eleventh in overall apostolic seniority. He also ranks as the sixth oldest among the current members of the Quorum of the Twelve, and the ninth oldest among all 15 apostles.

As I’ve noted previously, I have an indirect personal connection to Elder Rasband. When my wife was initially involved in the institute program, Elder Rasband was one of her instructors. As a result of the three apostolic vacancies in 2015, my wife was one of many who felt Elder Rasband would be called to the apostleship to fill one of those, and she (and others who felt the same way) turned out to be right.

I will never forget praying in advance of the October 2015 General Conference for my own personal witness to know that whoever was called had indeed been chosen by the Lord. The moment President Eyring read the names of the three new apostles, I received the witness I had requested. That experience is one that has been repeated for every apostle called since I entered my adult years.For that reason, I gratefully sustain not just Elder Rasband, but also each of the other 14 apostles in their divinely-appointed roles.

Having served for nearly 21 years as a General Authority, Elder Rasband has had 19 opportunities to address us in General Conference: 1 as a General Authority Seventy, 5 more while in the Presidency of the Seventy, and the remaining 13 since his call to the apostleship almost 5.5 years ago. Any of those addresses, covering a wide variety of topics, is well worthy of review. I am grateful for this opportunity I have had, in my own small way, to pay tribute to and reflect on Elder Rasband’s life in honor of his 71st birthday. I also continue to monitor all apostolic updates, general Church news, and any temple-related developments and will continue my coverage of all such updates as I become aware thereof.

In the meantime, that does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly-added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

Temple Construction Progress Update for Early February 2022

Hello again, everyone! As I mentioned in a recent comment on this blog, the queue of temples under construction has seen a dramatic shift. That in turn has changed the estimates within which those temples are anticipated to be completed. The nature of the adjustments has required a complete overhaul to my temple construction progress report. Aside from the changes, which I hope are relatively self-explanatory, I wanted to note that, in view of the unpredictable nature of COVID-19, as of today, I have eliminated any specific estimates for temple dedications, rededications, or groundbreakings and have opted for more general estimates.

Hopefully the Church's temple construction will not be as delayed as I have outlined in this newest report. But I wanted to be safe instead of sorry. The Church is doing a great job of monitoring and adjusting to the varying factors relating to the COVID-19 pandemic, which I anticipate may be the case going forward. To the best of my ability, I remain committed to tracking all such developments and passing word of those along to you all as I become aware thereof.

In the meantime, that does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: Groundbreakings Set for the Farmington New Mexico and Lindon Utah Temples

Hello again, everyone! A short time ago, the Newsroom and the Church News shared an exciting announcement:The second and third temple groundbreakings have been set for 2022. First up will be the Lindon Utah Temple. Elder Kevin W. Pearson, Utah Area President, will preside over that event, which will take place on Saturday April 23. The Lindon Utah Temple was one of six originally announced in October 2020, with a site announcement following two months later, with a rendering added to that announcement roughly six months later, As we also know, it has been previously confirmed that the Lindon Utah Temple will feature two baptistries.

The Farmington New Mexico Temple groundbreaking will occur on Saturday April 30, under the direction of Elder Anthony D. Perkins, who currently serves as the President of the Middle East/Africa North Area, but is a native of the region of Colorado that will also apparently be served by that temple. The temple, originially announced in April 2021, with a site confirmation following in mid-June of that same year, and the release of an exterior rendering following 4 months after that.

I received information late yesterday indicating that the Farming temple might have a groundbreaking sooner than I expected, but I was not able to confirm the details at that time. That being said, I do think this marks the beginning of a string of temple groundbreakings which could soon be announced. Among the next to have a groundbreaking are likely the Elko Nevada and Belo Horizonte Brazil Temples, along with several other temples in the United States, and perhaps also the Bahia Blanca Argentina Temple.

Whenever those announcements are made, I will be sure to pass word of those along to you all here. I am also monitoring all Church news updates and any other temple construction developments, and will likewise be sure to pass those along as I become aware thereof. In the meantime, that does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines.

Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: First Presidency Extends Washington D..C. Temple Open House; Pushes Back Rededication

 Hello again, everyone! Breaking news has been reported in a statement from the Temple Department, which was also shared by the Church News. Due to widespread interest in the reopening of the Washington D.C. Temple, the open house will still begin on Thursday April 28, but rather than concluding on Saturday June 4, it will be extended as needed to allow all who want to see it the opportunity to do so. The determination about the end date of the open house will be made later.

As a result of this adjustment, the temple's rededication, originally set for Sunday June 19, has been reschuedled to Sunday August 14. I am grateful for this inspired change. It means that some of the smaller temples, like Quito Ecuador, Praia Cabo Verde, Belem Brazil, and perhaps even Helena Montana, could be dedicated prior to this new rededication date for the Washington D.C. Temple. 

It will be interesting to see how all of that turns out. I continue to monitor all Church news updates and temple developments, and will be sure to pass those along to you all here as i become aware thereof. In the meantime, that does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. 

Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: 98.2% of All Operating Temples Will Offer Living & Proxy Ordinances in Phase 3

Hello again, everyone! Several weeks after the December 28 on temple reopenings, one major update has been announced today. In addition to the updated Church News article, the Newsroom has also shared the updates, which are likewise reflected in the temple reopening status tracker. This post will explore that update and what that means for temples worldwide.

This week's major update is that the San Jose Costa Rica Temple, which moved to phase 2-B earlier this month, will transition to phase 3 as soon as next Tuesday (February 1). As a result of this change, 167 of the Church's 170 temples will be in phase 3, which allows those temples to provide living ordinances in priority order and limited proxy work as scheduled. 

The Church News incorrectly notes that 166 of the 170 temples are open, but that article failed to take the situation of the Medford Oregon Temple into account. That requires some additional context: The Church News incorrectly lists the Medford Oregon Temple in phase 2-B, but that is not technically correct. That temple, originally announced to transition to phase 3 in August, closed not long after its' anticipated phase 3 transition for what the Church News incorrectly terms "extended maintenance", while the Newsroom and the Church's official page for that temple indicate it is closed for renovation. 

As recently mentioned, the temple's renovation may be minor, with the labor carried out by Church members rather than a construction crew including friends of other faiths, so there may be no need for the Church to publicly or privately rededicate that temple. That being said, the page for Medford also indicates that the temple has been granted a phase 3 designation, which allows those in the Medford temple district to schedule living ordinances and proxy work at the nearest temples open in phase 3. 

That's an update we haven't had before. As a result, while the Church News asserts that 97.6% of temples are in phase 3, the correct percentage should be 98.2%.No temples have currently transitioned to phase 4 (a full return to regular operations). But the good news is that, as COVID-19 conditions inprove in various parts of the world, the number of appointments scheduled for proxy work is gradually going to be able to increase. 

As a result of this transition for the San Jose Costa Rica Temple, that leaves 2 temples in phase 2-B, which allows living ordinances in priority order and proxy baptisms. So that means that, with all but 1 temple (Suva Fiji) offering limited proxy work, 99.4% of those 170 temples are now in phase 2-B or phase 3. So while the Church News incorrectly notes that 3 temples are in phase 2-B, there are only 2 temples still in phase 2-B: Barranquilla Colombia and Seoul Korea (neither of which have been announced for a phase 3 reopening in the near term). 

So this means that 9 temples are closed for renovation, with all 9 granted phase 3 status. 1 has been "paused" in phase 3, with 1 more in phase 1, and 0 in phase 2. With 2 temples in phase 2-B, the remaining 158 are in phase 3. I continue to be impressed by the inspired way in which the Church cautiously coordinates temple reopenings. The announcements on that, which may now come more sporadically than they have in the past, are wonderful to hear, and I'm grateful to have passed this news on to you all here.

For my part, I continue to monitor all other major Church news updates and temple developments and will do my best to pass word of those along to you all as I become aware thereof. That does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines.Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.